


The Monster

by lord_of_cats



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, M/M, and mimikyu inspired, perma grimdark dave, sorta disney inspired
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-14
Updated: 2016-12-14
Packaged: 2018-09-08 13:17:25
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,349
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8846554
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lord_of_cats/pseuds/lord_of_cats
Summary: When Dave Strider was six years old, his sister accidently cursed him to look like a hideous beast. Because of this, he hides away from all humans under a purple cloak.When John Egbert was Twelve, he was kidnapped by a blind dragon and hidden away in a tower. Many have tried to rescue him. All have failed.When Dave is offered his humanity back by a mysterious shadow, he immediately accepts the deal. But then he meets John, and all his thoughts and perceptions of humans are thrown into balance.





	

**Author's Note:**

> So for most of this, John is wearing a blue tunic with a vague resemblance to Links in the Legend of Zelda. Without the silly hat of course. It's not really mentioned but this is to get a picture in your head.  
> Dave is kind of a mix of grimdark Rose and Mimikyu (a Pokémon that hides its true face under Pikachu garb in hopes of love). So yeah.

_Once upon a time, in the far away kingdom of Derse, lived a kind and fair King and Queen. They ruled with a fair and just hand, aiding their people in any way they could._

_When the Queen fell pregnant, everyone was overjoyed, but filled with curiosity. Would this child be gracious and elegant like their mother? Would they be strong and fair like their father? Would they govern with an open mind or an iron fist? Would they be kind to their people?_

_Nine months later, the King and Queen were blessed with two healthy babies—a prince and a princess—and all the kingdom’s people’s prayers were answered._

_The twins were both beautiful and healthy. They had their mother’s long blonde locks, and their fathers calculating gaze. The people of Derse loved their new prince and princess, although a parent’s love for their child is without bounds._

_As the children grew, it became more and more apparent how special these two were going to be._

_The princess was gifted…in many ways. She had inherited her grandmothers strong magical powers, although this was not realised until far too late._

_The prince was unusually quiet of a babe his age, but when he did make noise, he babbled on and on. It was obvious to anyone who knew the royal family that the prince would take after his father._

_Everything was wonderful in the kingdom of Derse—until the worst happened._

_One day, the young prince and princess were playing outside, in the royal courtyard. They were playing games as six year olds play, without a care in the world. The young princess was pretending to be an ancient warlock, while the prince pretended to be a knight come to slay the warlock._

_Everything was fine, until the princess uttered a spell. She didn’t mean to do it, she didn’t know! But in uttering those words, she accidently cursed her brother, turning him into a hideous beast._

_In horror of what he had become, the prince locked himself up in his room, vowing that no one shall ever see his hideous monstrosity of a face any more. He hid there for years, surviving on food slipped under the door by servants too terrified to even speak his name._

_The King and Queen searched and searched for a cure, but never found anything. The princess was filled with regret, having hurt her only brother._

_One day, the prince was fed up with being holed up in his room. He cloaked himself in robes emblazoned with his kingdoms symbols and for once in 10 years, walked out of his bedroom. He arrived at the breakfast table and announced his plans to his parents and sister, much to their shock and amazement._

_Then, the prince ‘borrowed’ a horse from the royal stables and headed out into the wide would, hiding his monstrosities from view under a purple cloak._

* * *

 

_Five years later…_

 

Your name is Dave Strider, and you are a freak.

A hideous, cursed monster that deserves to hide away under a cloak for his entire life. In fact, that’s what you’re going to do. A long time ago, your family warned you against hiding away, but you refuse to listen to anything they say.

There’s a reason you fled home to travel the world.

 

The trees above filter the sunlight, creating strange patterns in the forests foliage. The current forest you’ve hidden yourself in is green, serene and definitely not mean. You like hiding in forests. The trees don’t judge you, and the grass feels lovely against your bare feet (when you’re stupid and dumb enough to take your shoes off).

You can survive pretty well out here, as long as you keep hidden for the prying eyes of the public. You’ve accidently shown your face to someone once, and it did not end well.

Ignoring the sad feelings washing over you, you cast your gaze around the forest, focusing on anything but your crippling feelings of terror and sadness. The sunshine is warm against your back, although the area around you seems a lot colder than it was before.

A shudder runs through you as a deep coldness trails itself up your back. All the light in the surrounding area seems to fade as the coldness settles down on your shoulder blades.

 

 _“Hello there, Prince David…What are you doing in my forest?”_ A voice like ice hisses out, draining the last bit of light and warmth with it.

“What’s that!? Who’s there!?” You yell, spinning around wildly, sword drawn. A breathy chuckle whispers in your ear and the cold pressure on your back moves.

 _“Just a friendly little shadow…”_ A dark shape slips into view right in front of you. It’s fuzzy, and you can’t make out any details, which is a little disturbing. Darkness billows around it like ink in a pool of water.

“What makes you so friendly, huh?” You point your sword at the Shadow, sceptically. Your response is met with another chuckle.

 _“Because I can make your deepest, darkest desire true. Watch this…”_ The shadow-creature waves its arms. You feel a change come over you. It feels good though, as if you are shrugging off a very heavy coat. _“Go on_ , _have a look.”_

 

A mirror appears in front of you, and your reflection surprises you. You haven’t seen this face in fifteen years.

They used to say you’d grow up handsome, and looking at you now, you know they were right. Sharp cheekbones, striking red eyes, white-blonde hair and paper-thin skin—it’s such a shame to see what you missed out on. You could have had anything, any _one_ you wanted, but your sister took that from you. Maybe now, you finally have a chance to get it back.

“What’s the price?” You manage to stutter out, still transfixed at your reflection.

 _“Whatever do you mean your majesty?”_ The Shadow says, and you can hear the smugness dripping from its words.

“A price. There’s always a price for these kinds of things.” A frantic tone enters your voice, and you make no move to stamp it out. You need this.

 _“Haha, oh your majesty, so intelligent you are!”_ The Shadow chuckles, casting longer shadows that dance around you in hypnotic patterns. _“One hundred miles north of here, is a prince trapped in a tall tower. Yes, I know it’s usually princesses, don’t give me that look. The dragon imprisoning this poor young monarch is rather blind, and mistook him for a delicate princess. You must rescue this boy and bring him to the castle west of Derse. If you deliver him to me alive and healthy, then I’ll give your true form back to you. I’ll even throw in a ransacking of Derse if I’m feeling good that day.”_

“Deal.” You say, almost without hesitation. You know making deals with possible demons is stupid, but you’re desperate for this. You _need_ to be normal again.

 

A row of pearly white teeth appear in the midst of the shadow, sharpened into threatening points.

 _“Excellent.”_ It hisses, voice barely above a breath. _“But first, for compensation…”_

You feel your humanness slipping away, and watch in horror as the darkness spreads across your face. Extra eyes pop out of your flesh, while tentacles and feathers sprout from the spreading darkness.

“What…? I…no!”

 _“Don’t worry…”_ The Shadow hisses as it dissipates into thin air. _“If you bring me the prince, I’ll give your humanity back to you.”_

The shadows fade, and light filters in through the trees once more. Warmth fills the clearing, and hope fills your chest. Ignoring the shadows ulterior motives, you just need to rescue this prince and bring him to the castle west of Derse (you think you know the one). Then, you’ll have your humanity back.

How hard could it be?

 

* * *

 

Your name is John Egbert, and despite what it looks like, you are _not_ a damsel in distress.

Yes _,_ you _are_ locked up in a tower guarded by a grumpy old dragon, and multiple ‘brave’ knights _have_ come to save you. Granted, none of them have succeeded and they’ve all met their ends at the jaws of the dragon. You never like watching that bit.

 

You don’t know how long it’s been since you were captured. A year? A decade? You lose track of time when you have nothing to tell it by.

You miss your family, and often wonder how they’re doing without you. Are they okay? Are they eating well? Sleeping properly? Why haven’t they come to look for you yet? Do they even care about you?

You brush aside those thoughts and slip over to the window. It’s a beautiful day outside. The sun is shining, the birds are tweeting, a horse’s hooves are thundering against the soft grass below.

You roll your eyes. Great. Yet another knight in shining armour here to save his damsel in distress. You wonder how they’ll react when they discover you’re not a princess.

 

“Your majesty!” The voice calls. You don’t bother to look down, you know what he’ll look like. You’ve rather had enough of tools. “I’m here to rescue you from the tyrannical beast that holds you captive!”

“Do you even know my name?” You get straight to the point, like you’re prone to do nowadays.

“Well no, but—“

“Do you have a plan to rescue me? Or are you just going to wave your sword around and yell loudly at me?”

“Hey! I have an actual plan, for your information! You should stop being such a snobby asshole and accept some help for once!” The knight snaps back. You look down in surprise, to have a better look at this knight. No knight has _ever_ talked to you like that. They’re all too busy puffing out their chests to notice you properly.

The first thing you notice about the knight is that you can’t. Notice anything about him that is.

His fine features have been covered by a dirty purple cloak edged with gold and emblazoned with a symbol from a faraway kingdom. His hands and legs are covered by some bandages, prohibiting you from seeing any inch of his skin. It’s strange, because knights always wear the most revealing clothes to show off their muscles and strength. This guy is much different. It’s like he’s purposely trying to hide himself from view.

“Really? And what is that plan, huh? Yelling at me from down there? Wow, real heroic and knightly dude.” You prop yourself up on the window and lean partway out, trying to get a better look at the knights face. Unfortunately, you can’t see anything.

“Oh yeah, totally. I’m going to stand here and yell at you. Yeah, that’ll work. My yelling will transport you down to earth, and together we’ll ride off into the sunset on the horse I borrowed from the nearby town.”

“You stole a horse? You’d better give it back.” You interrupt him, frowning.

“I didn’t _steal_ it, I _borrowed_ it. There’s a difference.”

“Suuurre.” You smile and roll your eyes.

“Hey! Don’t roll your eyes at me!” The knight complains. “I’m doing my best to rescue you!”

“Actually, you’re doing pretty good so far. Normally, the dragon would’ve swooped down and killed you by now. It always does that. Honestly, I’m a little surprised it hasn’t yet.”

As if on cue, a great roar sounds out, echoing down from above. A shadow moves over the sun, and great winds pick up from the flapping of the dragons ginormous wings. Your smile fades and you slip down, away from the window.

 

Great. You liked this one. He was funny and different, and now he’s dead. Well, he’s pretty much dead. That dragon is one powerful motherfucker. You can only hope that his death is quick and merciful.

You hide your face inbetween your knees and cover your ears with your hands. It’s always like this. After a while, you’ll peek out of the window to find the knight’s charred remains. It’s never pretty.

You wonder why the dragon took so long this time? Maybe it could somehow sense the hope blossoming in your chest and waited until it was in full bloom before snipping off the stem.

A few tears roll down your cheeks. You’ve long since given up on being rescued. This one is going to die, just like the rest.

Your fingernails dig into the skin above your ear as you attempt to block out blood-curdling yells and ear-shattering roars. It doesn’t work, you can still hear every instance of the battle raging outside. Suppressing a whimper, you curl in further on yourself, completely blocking out the sounds around you.

It’s better if you don’t hear it. Or see it. You’ve never liked dead things.

 

A loud crash breaks you out of your self-pitying thought process. You shoot up from your foetal position, astonished to find the end of a grappling hook lying on your carpet. As you watch, it begins to slide towards you, prompting you to get out of the way. It latches onto your windowsill, sharp metal edge embedding itself in the stone.

You stare at the grappling hook for a little while, before a somewhat familiar voice calls up to you.

“Are you coming down here or what?”

You stumble over to the window in shock, peering over the edge. The cloaked knight waves up at you cheerily, holding a frayed end of rope. Behind him is the bloodied corpse of the dragon that has held you captive for so long.

“I…what? You survived?” You gasp, staring wide-eyed at the dragon’s corpse.

“What? Didn’t expect me to?”

“No, I expected you to die! No one has ever beat the dragon before!” You clasp your hands together in amazement.

“So, you coming?” The cloaked night gestures all around him, but focussing more on the grass and fields than the dragon corpse behind him. “I’m on a quest to take you to a palace near the city of Derse. It’s very nice I hear—much better than this dingy old tower.”

“I don’t even know your name, and you’re asking me to travel all the way to Derse? Do you even know where that is?”

“Call me Dave.” He tips an imaginary hat your way, ignoring the last bit.

“Then you can call me John.” You tip an imaginary hat back. “Just hold on, I need to get something first.”

 

You scurry away from the window and dive towards your bed. With excitedly shaking fingers, you pull out your most treasured belonging. It’s nothing much, really, but it comforts you in times of trouble. Like a security blanket of sorts.

You clutch the raggedy old stuffed rabbit to your chest, smiling softly. Your sister gave it to you, a long, _long_ time ago. You’ve affectionately named her ‘Casey’, because you’ve always liked that name. You know it’s babyish for a twenty-year-old to carry around a plush rabbit, but you don’t care.

You tuck Casey into your loose blue tunic and head back over to the window, leaning back over. “So, how do I get down?”

“Just climb down the grappling hook’s rope.”

“A-are you sure? It looks a little unsafe…” You place a wary hand on the rope, testing it a little bit.

“I’m certain. You won’t fall.”

“Well if you’re certain…”

 

Grasping the rope firmly, you climb over the window and over, to the walls of the tower. For the first time in several years, the sun beats down on your body and you feel utterly alive. Slowly, steadily, you begin to crawl down the rope, making sure you don’t look down. You know what will happen if you do.

You don’t look down until you feel something…soft touch your bare feet. With a sudden, terrific realisation, you realise it’s grass! Laughing in delight, you plonk down on it, pressing your face against the dirt. You’ve missed this so much.

“Yo John, you alright there? You need a minute?”

You push yourself up to face your saviour, grinning from ear-to-ear. “Nope! I’m fine! Better than fine! I feel fantastic!”

“Well I don’t mean to put a damper on your happy mood, but the dragon killed my horse, so we’re going to have to walk to Derse.” Dave comes and sits beside you. Even though he’s much closer to you now, you still can’t make out any details of his face. You decide not to question it, deeming it rude to question your saviour so early on in your trip.

“Oh. Why are we going there anyway?”

“Oh, uh…a family member wants to see you. Like, safe and sound and shit.” Dave replies, after a little hesitation.

“Really!?” You gasp, clutching Casey to your chest. “I can’t wait to see them again! I thought they abandoned me!”

Out of the corner of your eye, you swear you see Dave flinch. You ignore it, opting instead to wrap your arms around his middle in a thank-you hug. You’ve missed hugs. Dave flinches, but pats you on the back regardless.

“Thank you, so much!” You beam up at him, once you withdraw from the hug.

“You’re…welcome?”

 

* * *

 

Your name is Dave Strider, and you’re beginning to wonder if it’s really worth it.

 

It’s been so long since you’ve had company. Not since you were a naïve child, and your sister…

It’s nice. You’d forgotten how much you used to talk, how little things could make you laugh, how nice it is to hear someone else’s voice for once. You’ve been travelling for days now, although it feels like much, much more.

John makes you feel…good. Much better than you’ve felt in a long, _long_ time. You guess friendship really makes a person feel better and act better too. You’ve missed having friends, and you know you need them to stay sane. But…how are you going to make them looking like this? Yes, you could hide under your cloak forever, but they would begin to suspect something was up. Not everyone is as oblivious as John. Then, they’ll tear off your cloak and react in terror, hating the monster they’re greeted with. They’ll hunt you down relentlessly, ready to kill.

It’s better you escort John to that castle and complete the shadows deal. You’ll be human again, so you can easily make friends again, right?

You don’t know how much ground you’ve covered, but you don’t think it’s very much. Progress is slow, especially since John insists on stopping to investigate some foreign object every few minutes. Just like he’s doing now.

 

“Hey Dave, look at this weird thing!” Speak of the devil. John pops up in your field of vision, brandishing a long, metal object with a curved end.

“John, that’s a spoon. Surely they had spoons before you were imprisoned in the tower?” You smirk, pushing the spoon away from your face. You might just be paranoid, but you don’t want the spoon to reflect any…unsavoury…faces in the metal.

“Yeah, they did, but I haven’t seen one in aaaages!” His voice takes on a petulant tone, as if he’s a young child demanding sweets. “And I’ve never been to a street fair before!”

You shrug, taking a glance around. This town’s street fair isn’t much. You’ve seen better, but John hasn’t. To him, this whole place is a new and exciting place, full of tasty food to eat, strange new objects to ponder on and strangers to introduce himself to! You know this, because you’ve spent all day being dragged around by John and he’s babbled in your ear about it all day about it.

Unfortunately for him, and fortunately for you, it’s getting pretty late and you should probably go to bed. Now it’s your time to drag _him_ along by the arm.

 

You half-wrestle the spoon out of John’s grasp and place it back on the stall vendors table. The stall vendor glares at you, muttering something about ungrateful teenage hooligans.

“Daaave!” John whines as you pull him away from the stall. “I was looking at that!”

“It was a spoon John, I’m sure you’d be able to live without it. Besides, Johnny-boy needs his beddie-byes.” You reply, in a slightly mocking tone.

John puffs up his cheeks. “I’m not tired!” As he says that, he yawns, completely destroying his own argument.

“Suuuure you aren’t. Come on, this hotel looks good.” You drag him inside, barely glancing up at the rusty old wooden sign hanging up above the ‘hotel’. ‘The Witches Covent’ it reads, and you can clearly tell this hotel is part tavern. John doesn’t seem to mind however, as he walks behind you docilely, all fight forgotten.

You stride up to the counter, slapping your hand and fifty dollars on the counter. “My friend and I would like a room for the night.”

The barmaid hardly spares you a glance, obviously used to strange folk. “Up the stairs, third door on your right.”

Nodding your thanks, you head upstairs to your room, John in tow.

 

It’s not until later, when you’re cosy in the hotel bed, that you really start to think. You’ve been alone for virtually your whole life. But now, you finally have a chance to be yourself again, and to have friends again. And you sure as hell aren’t going to let that opportunity escape you.

 

* * *

 

Your name is John Egbert and you’re making a campfire! A real-life genuine campfire!

Well, you have done this every day for the past week or so, but it’s still so exciting! You have been tasked with the somewhat menial task of collecting firewood, but you don’t mind.

 

The forest around you is dark orange, glowing with the colours of the setting sun. There are plenty of stray sticks around, which means there’s plenty of firewood. Just ahead of you, through a small line of trees is a crystalline lake filled with clean, drinkable water. You know this because you’ve already been down there for a swim. You insisted Dave join you, but unfortunately, he refused.

You huff, clutching the bundle of firewood to your chest (you left Casey back at the campsite, so you’ll need to make do with your comfort items). What is it with that boy? You have no idea what he looks like. It’s been weeks since he rescued you, but you have not once seen his face! He never takes that cloak of his off, not even to sleep! You wonder how that boy survives, especially on hot days. He must boil under that cloak.

Honestly, that boy will be the death of you. With his weird snort-laugh and even weirder sense of humour, you’re glad to have him as a best friend. You love bantering with him, as he always has the most hilariously stupid replies to your even stupider jokes. It might just be because you haven’t had human contact in years, but he’s really growing on you. In a lot of different ways.

You chuckle quietly to yourself, picking up another stick to add to the ever-growing pile in your arms. There’s something about the serene quietness of a forest that really makes you feel at home. Sure you’ve got the sounds of the birds chirping, the leaves rustling in the wind, the water splashing, the…hold on, water splashing?

You know it’s rude, but curiosity overtakes you. You put down the pile of firewood in your arms on the ground, stepping closer to the line of trees that block your view of the lake. Cautiously, you peer around the thick foliage, curious as to what you might see. You were expecting a bather from a nearby town, or at least something human. You weren’t expecting that…that… _thing…_

It’s grotesque. Its skin is black and slimy, writhing with tentacles and dripping with black ooze. Multiple eyes bulge out of the glistening orifices. They blink and shift as the things body moves, not staying in the same place. They seem to glow with an eerie intelligence, and you pray with all your heart that none of them see you.

You can’t move, terror has locked up your limbs. You need to run, to get out of here, to find Dave. He’ll know what to do.

The _thing_ seems to be cleaning itself, washing off black ooze with tentacled fingers. The ooze drips into the crystalline lake, blackness swirling around the thing. The thing dips under the water before popping back up, spraying water everywhere. It shakes itself off, tentacles wiggling and flinging water everywhere. It begins to make its way to the shore, a trail of inky blackness swirling in the water behind it.

It emerges from the lake, stretching out its limbs in a lazy, casual way. Despite having just been submerged in water, the monster seems fine, dry even! It bends down, slipping on a luxurious purple cloak. A luxurious purple cloak that looks almost exactly like Dave’s cloak…

Holy shit, that’s Dave’s cloak!

 

You’re certain of it. The rich material, the colour, the stain, the tears in the fabric…what does this mean?

Surely Dave’s not this… _thing,_ right? But, as hard as you try to deny it, the evidence is there.

The reason why Dave never takes off his cloak. The reason why he covers himself so thoroughly. The reason he’s so paranoid all the time. He must be cursed!

He’s your best (and only) friend. You’re sure the feeling is mutual. If he doesn’t want you to know about his…condition, then you should respect that. You feel you’ve already betrayed his trust in peeking at him bathing. If he wants to tell you, then it should be him telling you. You want answers, yes, but you also want your best friend to feel pressured or scared.

Slowly and quietly, you back away from the lake and pick up the firewood, heading back to the campsite.

 

* * *

 

Your name is Dave Strider, and campfires are your new favourite thing.

It’s warm, it’s cosy, and it’s the best place to sit and chat with your best friend.

 

“So then that asshole tried to climb up my tower to escape the dragon coming after him! It was kind of terrifying actually…” John chuckles nervously, staring at the flames. “Even though he was such a jerk, it was still horrifying to see him die.”

“It would have been. What were you, 14?” You stretch out a little bit, putting your toes near the fire.

“Thirteen, I think.”

“You think?”

“Yeah well, I don’t really know how long I was up there. I mean, I think I was kidnapped when I was twelve? I’m not sure, I can’t really remember. Time was weird in that place.”

You wince in sympathy. Being kidnapped is never a good thing, but being kidnapped so young and being forced into isolation…it must have been horrible. Isolation is never fun, and you’re speaking from experience.

You place a hand on his shoulder, startling him a little bit. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay.” He smiles warmly. “It wasn’t your fault.”

“I know, but I’m apologising to that dragon. Having to deal with you for eight years. Must’ve been really hard.”

“Daaaave!” John complains, puffing up his cheeks and pushing your arm lightly. “You are _such_ an asshole!”

“Your point?” You shoot him a cocky grin, even though he can’t see it.

“Heroic knights in shining armour aren’t supposed to be assholes! They’re supposed to be…well…knights in shining armour!”

“Hate to break it to you John, but ‘knights in shining armour’ aren’t like that. They’re selfish, callous and cruel. They only care about their self-image and picking up hot chicks. They’re disrespectful and rude. They treat those around them terribly because they see themselves as better. And believe me when I say this, I am _not_ a knight in shining armour.”

“Well I think you are.” John shuffles closer, a faint blush on his cheeks. “Not, not your description of them of course, but a better one! One that’s courageous and kind, with added hilarity and coolness to boot. I mean, all the others failed to save me—sometimes they even ran away upon finding out I was a boy—but you, you saved me! You actually killed the thing that held me captive for eight years! I mean, I don’t necessarily like murder, but what you did was amazing!”

Throughout his speech, John keeps on shuffling closer and closer to you. His hand places itself on top of yours and he gives you a shy smile.

“I’m not a her—“ You protest, but John frowns, cutting you off.

“Yes, you are! You are a hero, well and truly.” He blushes profusely. “Well, you’re my hero at least.”

Suddenly he’s leaning forward with his hands out-stretched. You think you have somewhat of an idea of what he’s doing. He wants to kiss you, although you have no idea why. You weigh the options in your mind. He could kiss you, and discover the hideous truth about your monstrous features. He’s your last chance at humanity, and you can’t let fear and disgust turn him against you (on the plus side, John would be kissing you). Or you could push him away and be safe.

It seems your body is involuntarily doing the latter option. Before you can stop them, your hands fly out to wrap around John’s wrists, stopping them in their tracks. The shock on his face is obvious, but you ignore it, shoving regrets deep down.

“I have to go.” You drop his wrists, quickly getting up. You nearly trip over your own feet in your desperate attempts to get away.

“I’ll be back.” You confirm before stumbling into the woods, breaking off into an uneven sprint.

 

What the hell just happened? You’re kinda freaking out right now.

John nearly touched your face! He nearly found out what a disgusting monstrosity you are. Your carelessness nearly cost you everything!

You need to stop being so careless. You’re not alone any more, you have to be more careful. You can’t just let people come so close to touching your face! They’ll discover the truth, and you can’t have that. Especially with John.

John’s…you’ve never met someone like John before. Granted, you _have_ spent most of your life hidden under a cloak, but still! He’s weird, he’s hilarious, he’s your best friend. You don’t want him hating you. But, whatever you do…he’s going to hate you. If you show him what’s underneath your cloak, then he’ll be disgusted and hate you. If you take him to the shadows castle, then he’ll hate you and you’d have betrayed him. If you don’t take him to the castle, then you’d piss off the shadow and confuse John.

You have no idea what to do.

 

 _“Ahh, conflicted, are we?”_ In your moping, you hadn’t noticed your surroundings darken—or the Shadow figure materialise in front of you.

“What are _you_ doing here? I thought you were staying at your castle?” You fold your arms to your chest and supress a shiver. Is it a lot colder here, or just you?

 _“Just…came along to see how you were going. Not so well I see.”_ The Shadow swirls around you a little bit, black against black.

“Well yeah! He’s kinda hard to deal with! He—“

 _“Uh uh uh…”_ The Shadow cuts you off, putting a dark tendril of smoke on your lips. _“Don’t care. Bring me that prince, and make it snappy.”_

“What do you even need him for?” You finally ask, although you’re not sure why you didn’t ask earlier.

_“Do you really need to know that?”_

“Yes! If you’re going to hurt my best friend in any way, I need to know what you want to do with him!”

The Shadow sighs, huffing out more inky black curls of shadow. _“I’m making a potion. The final ingredient is ‘the broken heart of a virgin prince’. And yes, I actually need his heart.”_

“What! You’re going to kill him!?” You half-yell, fear over-taking you.

 _“Oh shoosh, you should have known what you were getting into when you made a deal with a demon. You want to be human again, don’t you? So you better hurry up, or it’ll be your heart I’m using.”_ The Shadow snaps.

With that, he disappears, inky tendrils brushing across your cloak in a threatening manner.

 

“Dave? Are you okay!?” John voice calls, echoing in the night. You cringe, grasping at the hem of your cloak sleeves. You’re leading this boy to his death. This sweet, innocent boy trusts you, and you’re taking him to die. But, like the Shadow said, it’s you or him.

“I’m fine.” You say, but it barely comes out above a whisper.

You’re starting to think that maybe _being_ human isn’t the same as _looking_ human.

 

* * *

 

Your name is John Egbert, and you’re nearly there.

Derse is downright beautiful you think, but Dave doesn’t seem to agree.

 

Every single building is painted a different shade of purple. You’d think it would tire out your eyes after a while, but it doesn’t. It somehow perfectly suits the city, just like Dave’s cloak perfectly suits him.

The streets are bustling with purple cloaked figures, going about their day to day lives. It’s fascinating to watch them hurry from place to place, pale features highlighted by the purple on their robes.

Dave seems very anxious, sticking to your side like glue as you weave through the apathetic crowd. You don’t know why he’s so nervous, the crowd seems to be hardly paying attention to him. Some bow, but Dave pushes you along before they can talk to you. You know you’re nearly at your destination, but you don’t want to rush it! You want to take it slow, and savour the sights.

 

“Dave Strider!” A loud, feminine voice calls out to you. The townspeople gasp and murmur in surprise, parting around you like waves. Beside you, Dave tenses up, slipping his hand into yours. You turn to get a brief look at the angry woman beside you, but the setting sun blocks your view, causing you to squint at the brightness.

“Dave, I know it’s you! You can’t hide under that cloak of yours forever!” She yells again, taking a few steps forward.

Before you can react, you’re being pulled forward. Dave is yanking you by the arm, clearly very insistent in leaving. You don’t argue. That lady seems scary. You turn back and start running after Dave, clinging to his hand for dear life.

“Get back here!” The woman yells, beginning to jog after you. You don’t listen to her.

 

Dave pushes past guards who try to get in your way. They yell and chase after you, but Dave is too fast for them. He leads you down the street, feet thundering against the lilac pavement. Your lungs are aching—you’ve never had to run this fast before. A guard materialises right in front of you, scowl set heavy into his features. He’s coming right for you! There’s no way to escape in time! He spreads his arms out wide. His mouth stretches into a grin. This guards happy because he’s probably getting a promotion.

But not for long! Dave kicks at the guards chest, pushing him backwards. You barely pause to look at the guard before Dave pulls you away again, desperate to be anywhere but here.

“Oh for fucks sake!” The woman yells. Before you can get any further, the two of you are enveloped in a blue light that seems to freeze you in your tracks.

Dave’s reaction is instantaneous. He screams and snarls, twitching erratically. You try to reach out and comfort him, but you can’t move.

“I’m sorry…” The woman says, sounding truly sincere. “But it’s the only way I can stop you! I don’t want you to leave me behind again.”

Dave just snarls in response.

“I’m going to let you go now, please don’t run away.” The woman says calmly, although it sounds a little bit like begging. The light around you fades, and immediately Dave whips around to face the woman.

“How dare you.” He hisses, but the woman cuts him off.

“How dare me? How dare _you!_ You left us, and now you’ve come crawling back to Derse without a hello? You do know mum and dad _died_ in the time you were gone? You know how devastated everyone was at your departure? No. Of course you don’t, you’re too busy obsessing over yourself, as always!”

“What, like you’ve ever made the effort to get to know me?” Dave snaps back, fury evident in his tone.

“What, like you’ve ever given me the chance!” The woman replies, cheeks flushed in anger.

“Hi!” You step inbetween the two before their yelling match escalates any further. You offer out your hand for her to shake. “I’m John Egbert, Dave’s best friend! Who are you?”

The woman takes your offered hand with a gracious smile. “Queen Rose Lalonde—Dave’s twin sister.”

“Wish I wasn’t.” You hear Dave mutter under his breath. Both you and Rose purposely avoid it. You instead try to salvage the conversation, although both siblings seem against it.

Then, it finally dawns on you. Dave has a sister? Since when?

 

* * *

 

Your name is Dave Strider and you’ve always hated formal family dinners. Even though you’ve never really been to one.

Because you’re royalty, you’re expected to sit up tall and straight and eat properly. There are certain postures and cutlery positions that you have no idea how to use properly. You’re forced to stay and chat, being polite and courteous to people you have no interest in being polite and courteous to.

 

Rose invited (forced) you into the royal palace for dinner, which you are still not happy about. There is only three of you at the table for god’s sakes, why do you have to be so achingly formal?

It’s stiff, awkward and no one is talking to each other. The clinking of cutlery and crockery is pretty much the only noise you can hear. The table is set with all kinds of fine foods; roast duck, perfectly-cooked pheasant, turducken. It’s a meal fit for multiple kings, and you cannot eat it. Through the five years you’ve been on the open road, and the ten years you locked yourself away in your room, you’ve lost your taste for such fine foods. Looking over at John, you notice he has too. But, the two of you force it down in an effort to keep Rose happy.

 

“So uh, Rose.” John pipes up in an effort to start _some_ conversation. “You and Dave are twins? Is that right? You look about the same age.”

Rose puts her fork down and finishes chewing her bite before answering. “Yes, we are, although he wants nothing to do with me I fear.”

“For good reason too.” You mutter under your breath, earning yourself a glare from John.

“So you grew up with him huh? Do you have any funny baby Dave stories?”

You immediately turn to glare at Rose. You can feel all your eyes slithering across your skin to glare at her too. You know she can’t see them, but you also know she can sense them. She frowns, but ignores your glare.

“Why quite a few actually!” Her tone is smug, and she _knows_ she has you right and prime for the teasing. “Did you know he used to wet the bed?”

“Really?” John giggles, causing you to growl in frustration. Great. This is exactly what you wanted to avoid when you came through Derse. Your sister.

“Well Rose wet the bed as well!” You protest, causing John to laugh harder. Rose purses her lips and you shrug, grinning. “Don’t give me shit when I can easily give it back.”

“Dave slept with stuffed animal toys until he was 16!” You see John guiltily looking down at Casey in his lap. Because of this, you yell back something much worse.

“Rose has magic—and she’s terrible at it! She once turned our parents into pigs when she tried to conjure up some flowers for them!”

Rose narrows her eyes in disgust and you can tell you’ve hit a nerve. “Dave once at a pile of the cooks shit because I told him it was chocolate!”

 

“Yeah well at least I can live that down! You can never live down the fact you’re so shitty at magic! Why do you think I still look like this?” You gesture at your cloak wildly.

“Well at least I didn’t hide and run away from my problems! I stayed here and faced them! Maybe if you’d stayed and been a better brother I could’ve found a way to get you back!” Rose stands up, pushing the chair back. It scrapes along the stone floor, filling the room with its obnoxious sound.

“If _I’d_ been a better brother? What are you talking about? If _you’d_ been a better sister, then maybe we wouldn’t even be in this situation!” You stand up as well, directing the full force of your glare towards your sister.

“It’s not my fault!” She protests. “I didn’t know!”

“How dare you suggest that it isn’t your fault! It’s _always_ been your fault! _You_ were the one that made me like this! You have to stop pretending it isn’t your fault!” Rose gasps in shock and you instantly know you’ve taken it too far. You crumple a little, but keep quiet, hating the look of pure sadness and regret on her face. She may have ruined your life, but she’s still your _sister._

“I’ve lost my appetite.” She mumbles, stepping away from the table. “And it’s getting late. You boys should go to bed. I-I’ll summon a servant to escort you to your room.” She stumbles dejectedly away.

“Good job asshole!” John turns to you once Rose leaves the room, frowning with his hands on his hips. “You’ve gone and made her upset! You’d better go apologise to her.”

“Yeah yeah.” You mumble, staring at the door Rose left from.

 

You do say sorry a bit later, when John’s all tucked away and sleeping in your old bed. After a bit of awkwardness, you tell her everything that’s happened in the last five years. Including John and the Shadows deal.

She warns you against it, claiming the Shadow has nothing but bad intentions. You of course, know this, but you’ve made up your mind. You know it’s not the best choice you could make, but it’s you or him, and you really want to look human again.

After thanking her, you head back off to bed. After a dreamless sleep, you have a not-so-awkward breakfast with Rose and head off, out of Derse and towards the Shadows castle.

You know what’s going to happen to John once you get there, but that…just can’t be helped.

 

* * *

 

Your name is John Egbert, and this castle you’re supposed to meet your family in is awfully terrifying.

It is very big—its black spires tower above you. Clouds hang over the castle seemingly a permanent black and stormy grey. They’re pregnant—threatening to spill their contents at any moment. Crows fly around the castle, squawking, nesting and shitting everywhere.

It does not at all look like a place a member of your family would willingly hang out.

 

“Dave? Are you sure this is the place?” You ask, voice shaking a little.

”Yeah, it’ll be fine. This is totally the place.” He replies. He’s up ahead, standing on the bridge to the castle and looking up at the tower. There’s a certain…hardness to his voice, as if he’s about to do something terrible.

“Well if you insist…” You mumble, walking over to join him. The stone bridge is cracked and weathered under your feet, worn from the pounding of the elements.

“Come on. Time to go.” Dave says, grabbing your hand and yanking you towards the half-rotted wooden door.

“Woah! Dave! Be careful! You nearly ripped my arm off there!” You chuckle nervously, trotting after him. Dave ignores you, dragging you closer towards the door.

You frown a little. Dave’s acting a bit…weird. Normally, he’d say _something_ in return to you. He always has the last say, no matter what. It’s so uncharacteristic of him to just ignore you like that.

 

As he raises his fist to knock on the door, he pauses, gripping your hand tighter. He turns to look at you, and you feel his various eyes fixed on you.

“So this is finally it, right?” You smile up at Dave. He just nods in reply. “Am I going to see you again?”

“I-probably not. I have other things to do. Y’know, knighty stuff.” At his words, you feel a little crack form in your heart. You’re never going to see him again? He’s your best friend, you love him! Oh god, you…love him… Why did you have to figure this out _now_ of all times?

“Y-You should come over some time. To the kingdom where I’m from. Y’know, coming to visit me.” Your voice is shaking as you try to force the words out.

“I’ll visit you as often as I can…” Dave mutters, although you feel that comment wasn’t entirely sincere. “C’mon, let’s go.”

 

He raises his hand once more to knock on the door, but it swings open before his knuckles even touch it. He shrugs and walks on in, dragging you behind him, still with that too-tight grip on your hand.

Everything is obscured by darkness, making your eyes need to adjust. Once they do however, you start to regret letting them. The insides of the castle are even worse than the outside.

The whole foyer is in ruin and disarray. You don’t doubt that the rest of the castle is like that too. The walls seem to drip with some kind of toxic mould, as well as an unknown substance. Any furniture in the room has been completely ripped apart by unknown claws and knocked aside like a toddler’s unwanted toy.

A chill passes through the room. Instinctively, you stand closer to Dave, for safety.

 

 _“Aaah, you finally brought the boy.”_ A chilling voice, much like a rusty nail scraping along a wooden table passes through the room. A strange shadowy creature materialises in front of you, looking at you with unknown intent.

“Did you ever doubt me?” A cold hardness overtakes Dave’s tone. With a rough shove, you’re sent stumbling forward, towards the Shadow. It envelops you completely, making your eyes water and you cough and splutter.

 _“Hmmm, lovely. Yes, I was right, he’ll do. I won’t need to hurt him nearly as much to break his heart, it’s already broken.”_ The Shadow whispers, spilling a smoke-like substance into your mouth. You hack and cough, but it just keeps coming.

“Dave…” You whisper out, struggling to turn to see your best friend.

“Look, just, can we get this over with?” Dave snaps, taking off his hood. His eyes are filled with a certain coldness that chills you to the bone. His hair-tentacles wave around in an irritated way. As if you being trapped in a swirling shadow monster is merely an inconvenience to him. “I want to get out of here as soon as possible.”

 _“Of course…”_ The Shadow hisses, waving an inky tendril. Before your very eyes, Dave is transformed. His dark and slimy skin smooths out, paling considerably. His hair thins out, turning from thick black tentacles into wavy white-blonde strands. His eyes sink back into his skin until there are only two left—which stare at you with a fiery red determination. Red meets blue. Tears fall out of blues eyes, and red looks away in shame.

“You used me!” You manage to gasp out, feeling his betrayal like a knife in your heart. “I thought we were best friends!”

Dave says nothing, taking several steps back. You shed another tear, and suddenly Dave is running. Not to you, but away from you. You watch sadly as he bolts out the door, running away from his problems once again.

 _“Aaah, what a shame he couldn’t have stayed…”_ The Shadow whispers in that raspy tone of its.

“Stayed for what?” You ask, half-expecting to be ignored. You’re not, but you wish you were.

_“Why my dear…your death of course…”_

* * *

 

Your name is Dave Strider, and you are drunk. Very, very drunk.

It’s the only way you can deal with what you’ve done.

 

The way he looked at you…you’ll never forget the hurt and betrayal in those baby blues. You don’t know why you ever thought this was the right choice. Having your human form back isn’t as amazing as you’d thought it would be. You wish that you could take it all back. That you could go back in time and snatch John from that shadows clutches. But you can’t do that, and you must live with your mistakes.

The tavern is loud, with sweaty drunk men yelling at the top of their lungs to compete with each other. The whole tavern reeks of alcohol—the bartenders seem to sweat it from their very pores. This place is filled to the brim with misery and self-loathing, mainly radiating from you.

In front of you is an empty glass of alcohol. What alcohol it contained? You have no idea.

Your head flops down on the counter, barely missing your glass. A bit of drool dribbles out of the corner of your mouth, but you hardly notice.

Hopefully, you can drink enough to forget everything. Forget the way John instinctively grabbed your arm when the shadow appeared. Forget the way the shadow completely enveloped John, and you could hardly see him in all the shadows. Forget the way his eyes crumpled in pain and betrayal when you ran, ran far from your problems.

 

“Honestly David, you’re so embarrassing sometimes.” The girl beside you says. You didn’t even know there _was_ a girl sitting beside you. This grog must be working.

“Heeeeey girl.” You slur, struggling upwards. You fall back on the bar counter, too drunk to move.

“Dave, I’m your sister.” The girl replies. Through the drunken haze of your mind, you realise she’s the only one sober in this bar full of drunken idiots.

“Roooosey!” You cry joyously. “Wha’re yooooou doin’ ‘ere?”

“Looking after your sorry behind.” Rose sniffs. She’s not wearing her usual elegant gowns—it’s weird to see her blend into this bar of scum and drunks.

“’owd yooooou find mmmme?” You smile a little bit. Rose wrinkles up her nose.

“Same way I always find you when you crawl on back to Derse—my magic. It’s how I found you this time, how I found you last time.” She sighs, shaking her head in exasperation.

“Mmmmm t’ats niiice…” You slur once again. “Mmmmmy sister. Aaaalwaaays loooooookin ooooout fooooor mmmme.”

“Speaking of looking out for you, where’s John? I’m assuming you made the deal with that demon even though I warned you against it.”

Your smile slips off your face and the joy of seeing your sister again goes with it. “He’s gone. He’s dead and I killed him.” All traces of slurring is gone from your voice, it’s just replaced with regret now.

“Then get him back.” Rose says simply, as if it’s that easy. “Storm the castle and rescue him again.”

“But w’at if ‘es dead? W’at if I don’ mmmmmake it in timmmme?” The slurring returns, making Rose wince in sympathy.

“It’s better than drinking your life away in a tavern on the outskirts of Derse.”

“Yoooou ‘ave a pooooint.” With a tremendous amount of strength, you push yourself upwards, only to over-estimate your push and go tumbling backwards onto the dirty tavern floor. “I’ll doooo it! Gooooootta save ‘im.”

“That’s the spirit.” Rose encourages, delicately sliding off her bar stool to stand over you. “Go fix your problems for once.”

“I’, goooonna punc’ t’at s’adooooow guy in the face!” You exclaim drunkenly, waving your fist in the air. Everything’s kind of blurry, but you think Rose just rolled her eyes at you.

“But first, we need to get you sober.”

 

* * *

 

Your name is Dave Strider, and you are on the war path.

That Shadow is going to pay for what it has done.

 

Yes, you did kinda…ask it to do what it did, but you regret it now. That’s what matters.

After sobering you up, Rose gave you a palace horse, urging you to go after John. Its hooves thunder against the uneven ground as you race closer and closer towards the shadows castle. A storm has picked up, and it seems like you’re racing against the wind—as well as time.

The rain plasters your hair to your skull, but it feels nice just to have hair again. The wind whips your cloak around, so strong it actually slows you down. If your horse didn’t have cast-iron shoes, then you’d both have been blown away a long time ago.

 

At long last, the castle is well within reach. Suddenly, at the start of the bridge, the horse stops. With a strangled yell, you go flying off the horse’s back. You land in a heap on the cobblestone bridge, groaning and complaining. You struggle upwards, just in time to watch as your horse canters away from you.

“Hey! Come back!” You call after it, but to no avail. The horse just…keeps on going.

“Well this is just perfect.” You grumble to yourself, before trudging in through the castle doors. So much for a dramatic entrance.

The castle foyer seems abandoned, just like before. The high ceiling has holes in it, rain falling furiously from them. Puddles pool on the ground, and you resist the urge to splash in them. Come on Dave, you’re _cool._

Something seems to be urging you on. Whether or not it’s the Shadow, you have no idea. But, you listen, and let it lead you.

The hallways are dead silent, quiet except for the sound of your footsteps echoing down the hall. The whole place is in ruins—this becomes more and more evident the more and more rooms you see. But you ignore the disgusting state of the castle, and focus on finding John.

Eventually, you come across a spiral stairwell. Surprisingly, it seems to be the only thing in this castle not falling apart. The voice appears to be leading you here, so you decide to humour it.

The spiral staircase seems to go on forever. When you look up, it disappears into the darkness. Your progress upwards is slow, but you think you’d better save your energy for rescuing John. That Shadow is going to put up one hell of a fight.

As you climb higher and higher, the staircase falls further and further into ruin. Bits of the staircase have fallen away in places, leaving a deep emptiness behind. You have to be extra careful not to fall down them.

The staircase eventually come to a stop, a doorway a little way ahead. The door is hanging off its hinges, and it looks like it leads outside.

You grit your teeth and head towards the door, fighting the sudden urge in your stomach to flee. As you force yourself towards the door, the wind seems to push you back, as if it is trying to hold you back. You ignore it and push on.

 

You kick the door open for dramatic effect. As you do, a familiar figure looks up in shock.

“Dave!” John is staring at you with wide blue eyes. Your heart flutters a bit in seeing him again, but it soon shrivels up at the sight of what the Shadow has done to him.

Coarse ropes are tied around his torso, arms and legs, tying him to rickety wooden railing on the roof. They appear to be tied quite tightly too—if the pained look on his face is any indication. Blood is running freely down John’s cheek, watered down by the relentless rain.

An inky mass of black that you recognise to be the shadow looms over John. A knife gleams dully in its hand, dripping with a red substance. It’s safe to say its blood. John’s blood to be precise. You begin to see red.

 

“Give him back.” You snarl, for once having the first word. The Shadow turns to you, surprised.

 _“Whatever for? We made a deal. You can’t just go back on it now.”_ The Shadow sounds confused, as if it wasn’t expecting this outcome at all. Like it expected you to not care about John at all. Like you’d leave him behind. Which you…almost did.

“Well I want to. Change me back or whatever, just give John back. The deals off.” You take a step towards the Shadow, scowling.

 _“But this is what your heart desired most! You can’t just refuse it!”_ The Shadow seems…panicked somehow.

“Well maybe I found something my heart cared about more.” You take another step forward.

 _“No, no, no! This isn’t possible! You were perfect! You were supposed to want to be normal again above anything else! You weren’t supposed to care for the boy!”_ The Shadow staggers backwards, head in hands.

“Yeah well too bad, because I did.” You put your hands on your hips in what you hope is a threatening manner. “And I’ll do it again.”

 _“No!”_ The shadow shrieks, shadowy wisps bubbling and frothing as he staggers around. _“This isn’t how it was supposed to go! YOU!!!”_ The Shadow turns to you, two bright red lights shining where eyes should be. _“You ruined everything! You’re supposed to deliver me my ingredient! You weren’t supposed to fall for him! I NEED that potion! You’ve ruined everything!”_

Suddenly, it lunges at you. You only manage to dodge in time thanks to John’s worried shout. You draw your sword. You weren’t expecting a fight, but if that’s what the Shadow wants, that’s what the Shadow gets.

The sight of your sword seems to enrage the Shadow further. Its eyes glow redder as it charges once again. You hold the sword out to the side and step aside. The shadow runs right through the sword. Its body splits in half, but quickly reforms.

“Dave! It’s a shadow! You can’t fight it with normal weapons!” John calls, ever helpful.

“That’s probably why Rose made me take this!” Dodging the Shadows attacks, you pull out a shining yellow gem. The shadows reaction is instantaneous. It rears back, staggering as far away from the gem as possible.

Grinning, you throw the gem as hard as you can towards the shadow. To your surprise, the gem does absolutely nothing. The Shadows body just parts around it, the gem soaring straight through. The gem goes clattering down the roof, skidding down the wet tiles until it comes to a stop in the guttering.

 _“You fool!”_ The Shadow hisses. _“The magical gems are supposed to be used on a weapon! Not thrown!”_

“Shit!” You exclaim as the Shadow laughs and John face-palms. You break into a sprint, running towards the gem. The Shadow aims a blast of concentrated dark matter at you. You manage to dodge it—barely.

Ignoring John, you hop over the balcony. Controlling your descent down slippery tiles is hard enough, but with the shadow shooting at you it’s near impossible. But you’re filled with determination. You will not lose. You will rescue John.

Dodging the balls of dark matter, you manage to scramble down the roof, near enough to the gem. The rain is still pouring down, making the tiles extra slippery. You’ve got to be careful.

Praying that the balls of dark matter don’t hit you, you crouch down to grab the gem. You fumble with it a few times before finally sticking it in a notch on the hilt of your sword. You get to your feet, glowing sword by your side.

You whirl around and begin to bolt up the tiles. The Shadow shoots even more balls of dark matter at you, but you dodge every one. As you come closer, the Shadow backs away, shooting balls of dark matter even faster.

You leap over the railing, holding your sword high above your head. As you land, your sword catches the Shadow in the neck.

 

This time when the Shadow separates in two, it doesn’t come back together. It bursts into nothingness, screeching a terrible noise. You wince, and beside you, John covers his ears.

Above you, the sky clears up and the sun begins to shine once more. John laughs, relieved. His voice is a sweet and melodious sound, and it fills your heart with relief. You hurry over to him, dropping to your knees and rushing to untie the knots.

“I’m sorry.” You whisper under your breath, repeating the words like a prayer, or a chant. John just smiles down at you as you untie the ropes. You think you’re both crying, but it might just be your wet cheeks from the rain.

All too soon, John is free from the ropes previously tying him to the railings. You help him up, supporting him in any way you can. It’s a pitiful attempt to make up for what you’ve done, and you both know it.

John slaps you across the face. Hard. “That’s for leaving me with that creep!” He shrieks, a little red in the face.

You nod. “Yeah I…probably deserve that.”

Before you can react, John grabs you by the front of your cloak. He pulls you close, smashing your lips together. His lips are chapped, yet sweet, like some kind of exotic fruit. Then, all too soon, he pulls away, a smirk on his lips.

“But that’s for coming back.”

 

You chuckle, taking his hand in yours. The two of you turn towards the sunrise, and together, watch as those brilliant colours light up the sky.

**Author's Note:**

> Leave kudos and reviews if you want to live in a fantasy world where magic is real.


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